Something For The Weekend

Win a weekend at the Umi Hotel, London

 
Umi is a new, fun, friendly hotel in the leafy Rococco streets of Bayswater. The six floor mansion townhouse has been converted to accommodate three function rooms, a coffee shop, small internet cafe and 117 comfortable rooms.

One of the best things about this hotel is the lively atmosphere. As soon as you walk in from the hush of the garden square outside, you notice the general hubbub around the coffeeshop-cum-breakfast room (with smooth, fresh coffee and homemade pancakes - yum). Then there's the well-manned reception and the concierge desk which will organise all the tours, tickets and taxis you need to make the most of a London stay and, downstairs, a fully stocked cocktail bar and evening dining area which is a great place to chill out and meet other guests in the evening. The director, Steve, has a great policy when it comes to his staff - only employing people who want a career in hospitality - which means that all of this hubbub is run smoothly by enthusiastic and communicative staff.

The hotel also acts as a showcase for the work of student artists meaning that instead of a tacky reproduction image (or, god forbid, one of those Ikea-style close-up of a dewy petal) you're likely to have an entirely original print or photograph in your room. It's not often you get this kind of creative flair in a three star hotel. But then, Umi is a special kind of a three-star. All of the rooms have en-suite bathrooms, plug-in or wireless internet access, plasma TVs with freeview and the option of a laptop-sized safe. This makes it perfect for business travel as well as tourists.

Of course, one of the best things about a Bayswater/Notting Hill address is how close it is to the centre of town. This neighbourhood has all the convenience of Kings Cross or Paddington, but buckets more class. The museums in West Kensington are just a short bus or tube journey away. The local pubs that dot the quiet, green streets around the hotel are perfect for Sunday afternoon pints and, of course, Portobello Road is famous for its shopping and has some of the coolest bars in London (just check out Trailer Happiness if you need proof). All just a stroll away.

If you think you'd like to spend the weekend at Umi Hotel, enter our competition.

Please note: this competition is now closed.

Or, if you'd rather not leave it to chance, find out more and check availability.

Weekend of the 28th September

DUMBO Art Under the Bridge Festival, New York
Thirty blocks of Brooklyn’s trendy DUMBO district will be taken over for a weekend of art installations, open studios, night-time projections and musical and theatrical performances. It’s a showcase of 1500 local and national artists with local bars merging the lines between nightlife and daytime culture by hosting exhibitions. So you can ponder the paintwork while you sup on a margarita. More info.
4* New York - 3 nights + flights, leave 28th Sept from £499

London Fashion Weekend, London
This is more than just trendy togs, as well as the star-studded catwalk collections, there’s the chance to pamper yourself silly with nail bars, make-up masterclasses, Tony and Guy cuts, personal shopping advice, fragrance layering and even an experimental whirl in the flowerlab. It all sounds a bit girly, we admit, but guys – there’ll be hundreds of models milling around and, best of all, a chance to see the winner of Britain’s Next Top Model. Buy London Fashion Week tickets here.
If you're coming for the shape-throwing and air-kissing, you might want to have a look at our London hotels from £74 per night.
4* Radisson Edwardian Kenilworth Hotel from £149 per night

Harpoon Brewery - Octoberfest Festival, Boston
If you don’t fancy the enormous scale of the real Oktoberfest in Munich, why not try out the Harpoon Brewery. It’s a giant knees up which’ll give you a taste of the real thing plus the chance to explore the great city of Boston beforehand too. Expect continuous oompah bands, plenty of German food and beer and lots of contests. Needless to say, a wide selection of Harpoon's Boston-brewed beers is available for tasting. More info about the festival.

Weekend of 21st of September

Festes de La Mercè 2007, Barcelona
This is the Spanish city’s biggest festival – a tribute to their patron saint, the Virgin de la Merce. Barcelona is a vibrant city at the quietest of times, but when fire-breathing dragons, costumed devils, human pyramids, Sardana dance groups, orchestras, DJs and big-name bands descend upon its wide avenues and cobbled backstreets, the party atmosphere is bound to be electric. Events run from the 22nd and culminate in the grand fiesta on the 24th of September. Find out more here.
3* Barcelona - 3 nights + flights, leave 21st Sept from £158

Popkomm Festival, Berlin
You’ll have to take a long weekend for this one, but those cheeky days out of the office are always that bit more exciting. From the 19th to the 22nd of September the city’s biggest clubs unite to showcase up and coming talent from all over the world. With 450 acts in the line-up, it’s set to be a hedonistic boogie-fest that’ll have your ears ringing for weeks to come. One for the real party animals. Find out more.
3* Berlin - 2 nights + flights, leave 27th from 152

St Ives Festival, England
Make time for a little culture in your life with talks, films, poetry and jazz, classical, rock and folk music. It’s an eye-opening festival of ideas and experiences. If you’ve ever been before, you’ll know it’s the sort of weekend you’ll be talking over all year. Performers include the Wurzels, Mighty Zulu Nation, Legend reggae band and the festival climaxes with its grand ball, headlined by Chimanimani & Pond Life on the 22nd of September. More info.
If you're heading down, why not stay in one of our cosy UK hotels.
3* Sands Resort Hotel - Cornwall from £145 per night

PRICES ARE CORRECT AT TIME OF POST BUT ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

Weekend of the 14th September

Technopol Techno Parade, Paris
Like Mardi Gras for the electronic music lovers, this is your chance to party to the sounds of 100 DJs aboard 20 different floats. Around the circuit you’ll find house, techno, trance, hardcore and d’n’b thumping full force from the mile long circuit. Then, as the parade comes to a close, the clubs are just getting going. This is one event where you can be sure you’ll find an after-party in full swing. Check out the website.
3* Paris - 2 nights + flights, leave 15th Sept from £145

Rugby World Cup: England vs. South Africa, Paris
With Barkley, Vickery and Wilkinson off the team, England’s sorry-looking odds are England’s odds are 7:2 compared to South Africa’s 2:11.  The Guardian are even asking, is this the worst world cup team England have ever had? Whatever the stats say, though, there’ll be hundreds of dedicated fans who’ll be finishing work early on Friday and hopping on the eurostar to cheer them on come rain or shine. After all, you don’t need a stadium ticket to soak up the World Cup atmosphere. We have tickets for lots of World Cup games right here.
If you can't make it out there though, there's always the rugby gift box or more memorabilia. Plus you can celebrate our victory (fingers crossed) with a case of mixed wine with a free bottle of champers.

Night Carnival, London
The 15th and 16th of September sees the Mayor of London host a sparkling end of summer party. There’ll be music and dance on stage, children’s craft workshops, world food stalls and art installations. The festival culminates on Sunday night in a spectacular evening light carnival on the banks of the Thames, starting at Victoria Embankment, working down to Blackfriars Bridge and back up to the Royal Festival Hall. Make sure you’re there by 7pm to catch the start. Official website.
4* Danubius Hotel Regents Park - London from £81 per night.
If you're coming to London for the party, we've got somewhere for you to make a night of it.

X Factor exclusive pre-sale starts Saturday

All the thrills, all the shiny new stars, all the tears...

See the show everyone will be talking about. We've got an exclusive pre-sale from 9am on Saturday morning. Come back here and use this link (which will not work until then) to buy your tickets.

Ulster Bank Dublin Theatre Festival

The 2007 Dublin festival has already enjoyed record box office sales. The festival will be celebrating its 50th year too; from 27th September to 14th October it's your chance to see some of the freshest young talents on stage side by side with the wit and wisdom of some old hands.
Here are our Dublin festival highlights:

Our hot one to watch:
Long Day's Journey into Night, Gaiety Theatre, Dublin - October 2 to 13
Eugene O Neill is regarded as America's greatest dramatist and Long Day's Journey into Night his finest play. Add to that with the stage presence of one of America's greatest actors, James Cromwell, and you're on to a winner.

The Playboy of the Western World, Abbey Theatre, Dublin
In this contemporary re-imagining of  Synge’s great classic, the Playboy is Christopher Malomo, a well-educated refugee from Nigeria, on the run after he ‘killed’ his father with a pestle for pounding yams.

Fragments, Tivoli Theatre, Dublin - October 9 to 14
A new production featuring five of Peter Brook's shorter plays, Come and go, Rough for Theatre I, Rockaby, Act Without Words II and Neither. The revered director’s sinuous, stripped-back productions reveal all the angry warmth of the dark, despairing, and often comical, life-celebrating humanist, Samuel Beckett.

James son of James, Samuel Beckett Theatre, Dublin
James returns home for his father’s funeral having been away for 11 years. He is late and misses the burial by a day and a half. Not long afterwards he becomes embroiled in a powerful story of heroes, love, powers and revenge.

The History Boys, Olympia Theatre, Dublin - October 9 to 13
In Alan Bennett’s remarkable play, staff-room rivalry and the anarchy of adolescence provoke insistent questions about history and how you teach it; about education and its purpose. The History Boys comes to Dublin after sell-out tours of the West End and Broadway.

Homeland, Olympia Theatre, Dublin - September 28 & 29
Twenty-first century America has changed, and is rapidly becoming a radically different place. Homeland looks at American obsessions with security, distance, information, the relationship of fear and freedom, the increasing acceptance of violence, and the persistent new language of war.

The Grand Inquisitor, Tivoli Theatre, Dublin - October 10 to 14
Head back 500 years to Seville during the worst excesses of the Spanish Inquisition. In this chilling parable on religious faith and freedom of choice, hundreds of heretics are being burned at the stake, when hope suddenly returns with the arrival of a Christ-like figure that cures the sick and raises the dead...

Private Peaceful,  The Ark Theatre, Dublin - October 8 to 9 - only €10
Based on the award-winning book by the third Children’s Laureate and best-selling author Michael Morpurgo, Private Peaceful relives the life of Private Tommo Peaceful, a young First World War soldier awaiting the firing squad at dawn.

Exclusive Jamie Oliver recipe

It's here folks, an exclusive recipe from Jamie Oliver's new book, Jamie at Home. Cook it for your loved ones, your friends or maybe just yourself, but at least it won't be a microwave meal from Tesco's tonight, hey?

Try printing it out as a PDF here, or just follow the instructions below. Lovely.

Spicy Pork and Chilli-Pepper Goulash

The idea of cooking a tough piece of pork in a lovely pepper stew to make it extremely tender and melt-in-your-mouth is something I find quite exciting. This dish is one of my favourites and, unless you’ve got a strange aversion to chillies and peppers, I know you’ll end up making it again and again. It’s a complete classic. It’s also one of those dishes which tastes great when reheated the day after it’s made. You’ve got a whole range of chilli and pepper flavours going on; from smoked paprika to fresh chillies, and fresh peppers to sweet grilled and peeled ones. Delish!

Serves 4 to 6

2kg pork shoulder off the bone, in one piece, skin off, fat left on

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Olive oil

2 red onions, peeled and finely sliced

2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

2 generously heaped tablespoons mild smoked paprika, plus a little extra for serving

2 teaspoons ground caraway seeds

A small bunch of fresh marjoram or oregano, leaves picked

5 peppers (use a mixture of colours)

1 x 280g jar of grilled peppers, drained, peeled and chopped

1 x 400g tin of good-quality plum tomatoes

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

400g basmati or long-grain rice, washed

1 x 142ml pot of soured cream

Zest of 1 lemon

A small bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Preheat the oven to 180˚C/350˚C/gas4. Get yourself a deep, ovenproof stew pot with a lid and heat it on the hob. Score the fat on the pork in a criss-cross pattern all the way through to the meat, then season generously with salt and pepper. Pour a good glug of olive oil into the pot and add the pork, fat side down. Cook for about 15 minutes on a medium heat, to render out the fat, then remove the pork from the pot and put it to one side.

Add the onions, chilli, paprika, caraway seeds, marjoram or oregano and a good pinch of salt and pepper to the pot. Turn the heat down and gently cook the onions for 10 minutes, then add the sliced peppers, the grilled peppers and the tomatoes. Put the pork back into the pot, give everything a little shake, then pour in enough water to just cover the meat. Add the vinegar – this will give it a nice twang. Bring to the boil, put the lid on top, then place in the preheated oven for 3 hours.

You’ll know when the meat is cooked as it will be tender and sticky, and it will break up easily when pulled apart with two forks. If it’s not quite there yet, put the pot back into the oven and just be patient for a little longer!

When the meat is nearly ready, cook the rice in salted, boiling water for 10 minutes until it’s just undercooked, then drain in a colander, reserving some of the cooking water and pouring it back in the pan. Place the colander over the pan on a low heat and put a lid on. Leave to steam dry and cook through for 10 minutes – this will make the rice lovely and fluffy.

Stir the soured cream, lemon zest and most of the parsley together in a little bowl. When the meat is done, take the pot out of the oven and taste the goulash. You’re after a balance of sweetness from the peppers and spiciness from the caraway seeds. Tear of break the meat up and serve the goulash in a big dish ore bowl, with a bowl of your steaming rice and your flavoured soured cream. Sprinkle with the rest of the chopped parsley and tuck in!

Win a weekend at the Manor Hotel, Datchet

A really good boutique hotel feels more like the immaculately kept house of a fashion designer than a public hotel. The Manor definitely has that feel with its unique rooms decorated with plush, luxurious materials, individually selected colour schemes and furniture. There are two annexes, one with four bedrooms and the other with seven suites. In the Phillippe Starke bathrooms the heads of the power showers are the size of frying pans giving you that luxurious Victorian water-closet feel. The bedrooms themselves have all the mod cons like Wifi, 24 inch plasma TVs (in fact in the feature rooms there are plasma TVs in the bathrooms) and homely creature comforts like deep-fill, duck-down duvets.

So what makes a boutique hotel boutique? We think it's the fun stuff - The Manor has self-contained suites available (with kitchens) that not only share gardens, but have a private billiard room too. So you can knock a few balls about with fellow guests after dinner.

The restaurant, Black Olive, is a popular one in the local area. Definitely not the canteen-style eateries you get at larger, more corporate hotels (you know, the ones that smell of breakfast toast all day). It's a stylish, cosy place to eat, with exposed beams and rustic wooden furniture which contrasts nicely with the modern, fusion menu.

If you like the sound of the The Manor, just email us with your name, address and daytime phone number to be in with a chance of winning a weekend stay.

Or if you'd rather not leave it to chance, book your stay here.

Please note that comments on this blog will not be counted as entries to the competition.

How Mary grabbed the Tour de France

I GRABBED THE SUMMER and then had to hang on for dear life!! What a week.

We were relocated to Cambridge with my husband’s job from Atlanta, Georgia almost one year ago, so when we discovered the Tour de France Bike Race was starting in London for the first time in many years, the excitement started to mount. We knew we could not let this opportunity pass us by. 

It all began July 7 in London for the Prologue, a speed trial where each racer covers a 7.9 kilometer course as fast as possible. There were enormous crowds for miles and that only generated more fun and enthusiasm.  People of all ages, all nationalities, all sizes and every walk of life were standing shoulder-to-shoulder, armed with their cameras and prepared to capture great photos as each racer sped by.  It was hilarious to watch all those wannabe photographers trying to get “the shot” as each rider passed only to find he missed the racer!!  It was very funny to watch them prepare only to find they had missed again!!  This went on for several shots before the riders with their aerodynamic helmets and bodies close to the handle bars could be caught as a bright colored blur of speed as they sailed by. 

The Prologue began at 3 p.m. and ended when the last rider began his lap at 6:20 p.m.  As he passed us we packed our blanket and lugged our luggage back to the subway station heading for the train to Canterbury. I’m sure at least half the population of London was also heading in the same direction!  We arrived for our 8 o’clock dinner reservation at 10 o’clock, and finally collapsed in a 12th century B&B. Do you think we were impressed and excited?

After our full English breakfast, we set out to explore Canterbury and the cathedral for a short while before heading to the finish line.  The streets were already filling with tents selling fresh baked breads and pastries, strawberries and cream, cherries, olives, anything you could think of.  It was a beautiful morning and you could already tell it was going to be another hot race day.

After continuing to travel with our luggage on the cobble stone streets, pavements, roads, up and down stairs, we finally settled into our perfect location. Our spot was approximately 325 meters from the finish with only one row of people in front of us.  Great place for more photo opps. Everyone was patient, hot, and just so glad to be at this place at this time to see these riders as they headed for the finish line on the first leg of their long journey.

As we watched the filming helicopters get closer and closer, you could really feel the excitement building in anticipation of what was about to happen.   Here they come and there they go.  The leaders and the pelethon passed us just that fast.  It was like an artist stroke of bright and beautiful liquid color as they passed.  It probably lasted no longer than 10 seconds. But what you felt just by being there! And you get to see it all over again tomorrow. It is one of those moments that I will never forget.  At that point the SUMMER HAD GRABBED ME!

As soon as the riders passed us we collected our luggage (again) and headed to the train station, then the ferry terminal to cross the English Channel. Another wonderful thrill and something new for us.

With all the ticket planning laid out so smoothly, you knew you were living on borrowed time before disaster would occur. It happened when we departed the ferry terminal in Dunkirque and found NO WAY to get to the train station.  We finally found someone who told us we had to call a taxi. By the time they arrived there were 6 Americans who had missed the last train to Lille with connection in Brussels to Gent for the arrival of the bikers the next day. You should have seen all of us trying to come up with enough cash to pay for the taxi. Euros, pounds, American dollars, all swapping hands allowing us to barely catch the last train to Brussels for the night.

We had all decided we wanted to be at the finish line in Gent since this would be our last day with the tour and thought we would get to the finish line early only to discover many, many other spectators had already filled that area.  So we walked a little of the city and made our way back toward the finish line for the 5:30 arrival of riders.  People were everywhere- - standing on all the balconies, sitting in the concrete window ledges, one bloke was sitting on the top of traffic light. It was amazing to see the sheer number of spectators who turned out in each city to get a glimpse of these world-class riders.

All or time and effort carrying our luggage and backpacks for 2 days, the eight trains we caught, the missed train, one ferry, the numerous subway trains, the millions of steps, in 4 days to reach 3 different countries, did not dampen the spirit and the excitement of this event.  I would not have changed a minute of it (well, maybe the missed train).  I learned a lot, saw many new places and things, and the amount of determination these riders show every day when it is time to begin another new leg of their journey is simply incredible.

I grabbed the summer of 2007 and it is definitely one I will never forget!!!

Mary Jones

Jamie at Home - at the weekends

To celebrate the release of Jamie Oliver's new book Jamie at Home on September 6, we're giving one lucky newsletter reader an £100 voucher for Jamie's London restaurant, Fifteen. You can enter the competition here.

Jamie at Home includes 100 new recipes, all inspired by Jamie's garden at home, and in particular his beloved vegetable patch. Jamie says, 'I came to realise last year that it's not always about looking out at the wider world for inspiration. Being at home, feeling relaxed and open, can also offer this'.

We also asked Jamie to tell us what he gets up to at home at the weekends. Here's what he had to say:

On Thursday (6th September), we’ll also be publishing an exclusive Jamie Oliver recipe, right here. So check back on Thursday.